The Golden Era – Rap, Reviews, Videos – english

Smoothe Da Hustler – Once Upon A Time In America

Year: 1996

Titled after the epic Sergio Leone movie from 1984 starring Robert DeNiro, the debut LP by Smoothe Da Hustler came out 12 years later. If you saw that movie, you would expect a lot from an album named after it and well, what you wouldn’t be is dissapointed. This is a record that captures the whole rough, rugged and raw atmosphere of the golden nineties.

After a little intro, things get started with Fuck Whatcha Heard featuring Smoothe’s brother Trigger Tha Gambler (together they ran as the Smith Brothers). The harmony between the MCs and the beat is flawless. The track got a real menacing vibe, and by that I mean it seems ready to jump right out of your speakers, grab you by the throat and choke you at any time. That goes for most of the other tracks as well, rollin slow, but bearing a highly aggressive energy, not least because of Smoothe’s rough voice. But of course he holds his own on Only Human, one of the songs with a more mellow kinda vibe, too.

Except for his brother Trigger, the only other featured rap artist is D.V. alias Christ, whose trademark style perfects Dollar Bill and Murdafest. No need for other guest rhymers, Smoothe Da Hustler got lyrics for days and kills every track on this fine piece of plastic. Of course, his most famous tune is on here too, Broken Language, and if you don’t know what I’m talking about, then you slept on one of the most original rap tracks of the 90s… This one ist just raw. There is no hook. No R&B. No nothing. Just a hard ass beat by DR Period (who handled the entire production) with Smoothe and Trigger taking turns in doing what they do best: delivering hardcore rap from the streets of Brooklyn. You can bump this one 25 years from now, and it will still be one of the hardest tracks out there; Broken Language represents everything I loved about NYC HipHop back in the days.

Listen to the album, and you will know why Smoothe calls himself Da Hustler. So put on your hoody, light one up and nod your head to this: